From Womb to Tomb: Life is What We Make It — Are You Living Your Legend? - The 2% Solution: 30 Minutes to Transform Your Life

Episode Transcript
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Dai Manuel (00:08):
Hey, hey, hey.
Wellness warriors, welcome backto another episode of the 2%
Solution.
I'm your host, don Manuel, andtoday we're diving into a topic
that's as big as life itself.
Literally, we're talking aboutthe journey from the womb to the
tomb and asking the questionare you living your legend?
It'll be powerful, so buckle up, let's get into it.

(00:31):
You're going to start with asimple truth Life is what we
make.
It Sounds like a cliche, but, aswe all know, cliches are
usually based on some form oftruth and, from the moment we're
born to the moment we leavethis world, every choice, every
action, every moment contributesto the legacy we leave behind.

(00:55):
But here's the kicker Mostpeople live on autopilot, me
included at times, which I'mmore hard to be more aware of
what's going on in the moment.
But as much as we're living onautopilot, we're also going
through the motions without evertruly engaging with our fullest
potential.
Did you know that, according toa Gallup study, only 15% of

(01:20):
people worldwide are engaged atwork?
That means 85% of people arejust going through the motions,
not fully tapped into theirpurpose nor their potential.
I mean, that's a staggeringnumber and I hope at least.
When I saw that, I was like,okay, wake up call, and maybe
that's what we're all feeling,because we have the power to

(01:43):
change that narrative and liveour lives with intention.
But it starts with making aconscious choice to do so.
Share a little personal story.
When I started in the healthand fitness industry, I was just
like many others trying to makea living, unsure, quite
literally, of where I was goingand, honestly, just trying to
keep my head above water.

(02:03):
But one day something clickedand I really realized that if I
wanted to create a meaningfullife, I had to start living
intentionally and make decisionsthat aligned with the legacy I
wanted to leave behind.
And the funny thing was, youknow, this whole idea of legacy,
I didn't really understand ituntil I read a book called the

(02:25):
alchemist by um paulo coelho,and that's spelled c-o-e-l-h-o.
Amazing author and he's writtenso many amazing books, but the
one that's, uh, most acclaimedis the alchemist and it's really
.
It's just a.
It's a wonderful story aboutthe hero's journey.

(02:48):
Right, we all go on thisjourney.
Sometimes we we grew up in our,our towns or our situations or
predicaments, and it's funny aswe grew up, we just think our
world is so small and we aspirefor so much more, and sometimes
we get to that place where webelieve we just got to go out
and carve our own place in theworld and sometimes travel far,
far away to discover that thing,that legacy, that purpose for

(03:12):
ourselves.
I won't ruin the book becauseit's freaking awesome and if you
like audible books, like I do,there's an audible version of
the book that's narrated andacted out by the great Jeremy
Irons.
If you're not familiar withthat Academy Award winner, where
have you been, I mean really,the last 30, 40 years?
The guy's like the screams andhe's just a phenomenal actor.

(03:34):
But he's honestly the mostentertaining version of the
Alchemist I've ever had theopportunity to digest and
consume, and I actuallyre-listened to it quite
regularly.
A little side note theAlchemist was the book I gave my
wife on our very first dateabout 23 years ago.
Crazy, right, but I thoughtthat was way better than flowers

(03:55):
.
So make note of that.
Write that down, guys, if youneed a really cool gift that
keeps on giving, because itcould make quite literally
someone's perspective on lifecompletely change when they read
, and it had that effect on me.
And so, going back, he talksabout this idea.
Are you living your legend areyou?
Are you out there creating yourlegend?
What is that?

(04:16):
Do we know what that is?
Are we intentionally chasingsomething?
I mean big, big questions.
But how many times do we takethe moment to just sit back and
ask ourselves a question and sitwith it to the point where we
start to find that inner clarity?
When we feel that inner clarity, at least directionally
speaking, we have the idea ofwhat way we should be facing,

(04:39):
what we should start walking.
Confidence goes up.
And when we start feeling moreconfident, cool stuff happens
because we start to take moreintentional, decisive action,
and that in itself reaffirmsmore confidence, especially
based on the traction, or lackof traction, we get.
We can adjust and adapt.
We can sort of see how thisnatural ebb and flow.

(05:03):
So yeah, long and short of itall, I went through this sort of
phase, especially after readingthe Alchemist.
I was 19 when I read it.
This is going wait, that's along time ago.
It's like I was 19 when I readit.
This is going man, that's along time ago.
It's like whoa, it's almost 30years ago.
Wow, I just had a little bit ofa shivering moment there and
goosebumps are up.
I just realized, yeah, I'mgoing to be 48 this year, holy
smokes.
Anyways, I digress, but thebook's great and I highly

(05:26):
recommend it.
And for myself, when I reallygot clear on this idea, you know
that I wanted to createcommunities, support communities
, but especially with justliving healthy for as long as we
can.
It's funny 30 years later wehave this concept of healthspan,

(05:50):
not lifespan anymore.
We're not worried about howlong we live, we're worried
about how long we live healthilyright.
Say that 10 times.
Healthily, that's a weird word.
It's kind of trips my tonguewhen I say it.
So I got to say it againHealthily right.
So keep in mind, you know.
And what are we doing every dayto ensure that we're following
that path, if that's the path wewant to follow?
But you see, if you don't knowwhat direction you ought to be

(06:12):
going, I guess any direction isgoing to go.
But through it all, you know, Ikept returning to that question
Am I living my legend?
Am I living my purpose?
And that question has quiteliterally guided me ever since.
Now, there's been lots ofmoments where I've had well, to
be quite frank, I've lost thefocus or the clarity on my
direction or the purpose, andwhenever that happens, things

(06:34):
tend to go wrong.
I won't get into all the gorydetails today, but I've had some
paths I've gone down and I'vequestioned why the hell did I go
down it?
And, to be honest, that lack ofclarity or confidence easy way
to get distracted and startseeing those shiny bright lights
when we start chasing otherthings.
Think of that.
Maybe that's what I want.
It's funny I always keep comingback to the same thing.

(07:00):
Now let's get into some of thescience of this, because living
with purpose isn't just a greatidea or concept, it's actually
backward research.
A study published in thejournal Psychological Science
found that people with a strongsense of purpose live longer,
healthier lives.
Now we've seen that, alsoedified and shown again to be
true, or at least anecdotally,but also scientifically speaking

(07:21):
.
When we start looking at theresearch from the blue zones and
I've talked about that in aprevious episode, I'll link to
it in the show notes but we seethese centurions people living
to be 100 plus years old andthey're not just sitting around
waiting in some sort of a home,if you will Like.
I remember my old mom, my mom'sor my dad's mom, you know,
grandma Grace.

(07:41):
She sat in a home for literallythe last like 20 years of her
life and she didn't move muchbetween those chair to the
bathroom, to the dining tableand between those three points.
Right, well, she was happy andshe had family and it was good.
But when I look at some ofthese examples of people in
their 100, you know, hitting 100plus, and they're out there

(08:01):
competing in some sport.
You know they're doing passionprojects.
They're out there, you know,picking up new hobbies, I just
I'm inspired and I think it sortof shifts our belief around
aging and what does that evenmean, anyway, so that's a really
cool study, especially the BlueZone.
So make sure you check out thatepisode.

(08:21):
If you haven't, it'll be linkedto the show notes.
But there's less likely tosuffer from chronic diseases as
well, right?
So this strong sense of purposedoesn't only help us live
longer, healthier, but we tendto suffer less from chronic
diseases, but they also havelower levels of stress and
anxiety.
Hello, sign me up.

(08:42):
Right, but here's something youmight not know.
The same study found thathaving a grand overarching
purpose wasn't the onlyrequirement.
Even small everyday goals cancontribute to that sense of
purpose.
It's about finding meaning inthe little stuff Helping a
neighbor out, pursuing, maybe, anew passion project, or just

(09:04):
being present in the moment withyour loved ones.
Either way, they're all greatgifts, but they're also gifts
that give back to yourself andrealign with that sense of
purpose.
Now here's a few strategies tostart living your legend.
Number one you got to know whatyour core values are.
These are the things that weknow to be absolutely true, and

(09:28):
you could do a little assessment.
You can ask yourself what issomething that I will not
negotiate on?
Maybe it's family, maybe it'syour health.
Maybe it's the way that youdecide to treat brand new people
when you meet them.
Maybe there's a certainkindness that you believe should
be always offered up first.

(09:48):
Lead with kindness, right.
Either way, these are values,these are things that you hold
to be absolutely true andthey're non-negotiables.
So taking some time toliterally reflect on what truly
matters to you is important.
Because what values guide yourdecisions every day?
The automatic ones and the onesyou have to sit back and ponder

(10:09):
on?
Because once you clear on these, if you start aligning your
actions with them, watch out, itis like a vacuum just pulling
you along.
All right, or maybe a blackhole is a better example.
But it's this incredible amountof pull that you'll start to
feel as you start crushingthings on your list, starting

(10:33):
chasing those goals, butespecially doing things that
align with who you really valueyourself as.
So, number one identifying yourcore values really excellent
exercise.
Brene Brown's got somewonderful resources on that.
I'll link to a couple of thosein the show notes as well.
Number two set intentional goals.
I mean these don't have to bemassive goals by any means.

(10:53):
Start small.
You know we're all about 2%here, right?
Start small.
It's those small ones, thosesmall changes, sometimes the
hardest ones to make, but it'scommitting to daily exercise,
spending more quality time withfamily or learning a new skill.
These are all great intentionalgoals and if they align with
you, great make it.
But the key is to make thesegoals intentionally, but align

(11:15):
them with your values as well,because if they're not aligned
with your values, I'll tell youin my experience,
procrastination sure feelseasier than doing whatever the
thing is that we said we shouldbe doing.
Because if it doesn't alignwith who you are and what your
values are, and especially whatyou see as your overarching
vision or purpose of your life,gosh you got yourself.

(11:36):
Why are you even doing it?
Number three practice gratitude.
Take a moment each day toreflect on what you're grateful
for.
Simple practice can shift yourmindset and help you focus on
what's truly important.
Number four surround yourselfwith like-minded people.
Very critical, you know.
Your tribe determines your vibe.

(11:58):
Your environment literallyplays a huge role in your
success.
Around this, too, surroundyourself with people who inspire
, challenge, uplift you andsupport you on your journey.
And number five stay curious andkeep learning.
Life is a continuous journey ofgrowth.
Stay curious, keep learning andalways be open to new

(12:19):
experiences.
So there you go Five accessiblestrategies, right?
Any one of us can do that.
They don't cost money.
It takes a little bit of time,a little bit of effort, a little
bit of intentionality right.
But identifying your corevalues, setting intentional
goals, practicing gratitudedaily, surrounding yourself with

(12:40):
people just like yourself orpeople that want similar things,
and staying curious while youkeep learning.
You can do all those, but don'tworry about trying to do all of
them.
Pick one and start there andsee what happens.
Now, if you want to dive deeperinto this topic, I recommend
checking out resources like theJournal of Psychological Science
, books like Viktor Frankl'sMan's Search for Meaning the

(13:04):
Alchemist by Paulo Coelho.
I also, you know I'm going tolink to some of the work by
Brene Brown, even a couple ofher TED Talks, but these are
just great resources to start tostimulate your mind of what's
possible when you start to leaninto some of these ideas,
strategies, concepts, especiallyaround purpose.
So, my wellness warriors,that's it for today's episode on

(13:27):
living your legend.
Remember, life is what we makeit and every day is an
opportunity to create the legacywe want to leave behind.
So ask yourself, are you livingyour legend?
And if not, what can you dotoday to start?
Thanks for tuning into the 2%Solution.
If you found value in today'sepisode, share it with a friend

(13:49):
who might need a little push tostart living with more intention
.
Don't forget to follow us onsocial.
Leave a review if you're lovingthe podcast.
That makes me feel so good, butit also keeps me excited to
keep showing up and stayintentional, stay strong and
keep pushing your limits.
I'm Diamond Wall.
You've been listening to 2%Solution.
Keep thriving, keep smiling,keep trying to be that best

(14:12):
version of you, because you'reworth it.
See you next time.

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From Womb to Tomb: Life is What We Make It — Are You Living Your Legend?

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